Archive for September, 2010

Continuing the No-Gi theme here is an Eddie Bravo instructional video explaining the basics of his vaunted Rubber Guard. The sound is not quite synchronised with the video, but it does the job. If you want a perfect version, I would recommend buying his instructional dvd, Mastering the Rubber Guard (which has plenty more random no BJJ stuff in it). He also has numerous books that, but I’m sure you know how to google, so go find them, because he is the most creative BJJ instructor around. Head Movement is an advocate of creativity in martial arts and it is always important to keep an open mind. Some of the things your instructor may tell you, may be wrong or impractical. Additionally, they may bag on styles they don’t understand or practice themselves. I’m not saying I necessarily know any better, but after training in various disciplines under various instructors (some good ones) I have found that what I have been told is not always true.

After the jump, a short video talking about Eddie’s 10th Planet Jiu Jitsu style, which has recently become more and more used in grappling competitions and MMA. Continue reading →

Here is a pretty dope instructional video from the Tobikan Judan on how to execute some effective Judo throws without the Gi. I am no Judoka myself, but I’ve found that after watching this video I was able to use a couple of throws against other non-Judokas pretty easily. If you practice Judo already, then you’ll find Aoki demonstrates some tweaks to your technique to allow you to use this in No-Gi or MMA competition. Check it out, it’s subtitled but worth going over a few times.

Yeh sure, the Doc Hamilton system seems pretty complicated, but there is some good food for judging criteria thought in this FIGHT! Life video with reffing legend Big John McCarthy. I like the idea that when a fighter wins a round significantly, it should be scored more significantly than when a fighter wins a close round (obvious, I know). The best suggestion is that referees and judges go through some training/sparring so that they can understand what is actually happening in front of their eyes. That way, maybe Roy Nelson wouldn’t have been stood up when he was working for a Kimura in side control (obviously not stalling!) and Cecil Peoples could see how much leg kicks really freakin’ hurt!

Classic striker versus grappler match up……blah blah blah….Realistically, both these guys have been around long enough that they are both more well-rounded than their stereotypes. Frank Mir can strike now (maybe not as well as he thinks he can, but still pretty damn good), he rocked Cheick Kongo, he finished Old Big Nog and his footwork his pretty solid. His karate background means he has a decent kicking game which is complemented by his flexibility. Obviously his Jiu Jitsu is “top of the food chain” (to quote Joe Rogan). It’s not serious ADCC or Mundial medal winning Jiu Jitsu, but Mir is very creative on the ground and is effective in a ground scramble. Undoubtedly, his biggest weakness is his wrestling and while Cro Cop is no Brock Lesnar in that department, he is undeniably one of the best anti-wrestlers ever to compete in the sport. This could make it very hard for Mir to take the fight where he needs to. If Mir chooses to pull guard he risks being in the bottom position against a man who has devastating ground and pound. Cro Cop is no slouch on the ground having studied BJJ for about 10 years and he has only been submitted by Noguiera. On the feet, where I think a lot of this fight will play out, Cro Cop still has the advantage. Mir is not Junior Dos Santos or Overeem and I don’t expect him to soundly outstrike Cro Cop or knock him out. Nonetheless it is still yet to be seen whether Cro Cop can corner anyone in the cage the way he could in the ring and I think Mir will be prepared for his vaunted left head kick by circling away. If Cro Cop wants to use his best tool he has throw right leg and body kicks at Frank Mir to stop his lateral movement. The truth about this fight like any recent Cro Cop fight is it comes down to whether he still has the mentality. Mir has probably annoyed him enough to take this seriously, but he needs to be brave to uncork fast kicks at the risk of being taken down. I could analyse this match up forever because I think in many ways it is a pick-em, but I’m tending towards Mir as there are too many doubts hanging over Cro Cop, especially with all the eye injury rumours lurking about and I think he has more ways to win. I’m not sure he can finish Cro Cop so I’m picking a decision.

Damn! Heard about this on Sunday but wanted more info. Turns out Chael Sonnen tested positive (not for G-A-M-E) but for PEDs before his fight with Anderson Silva. What’s weird about this story is that he admitted it before the test! CSAC (the California State Athletic Commission) let him fight anyway, which is ridiculous. Surely this means the rematch on the New Year’s card is off and everyone should thank Anderson Silva for saving the UFC from having a roided champ. Chael had no medical reason to take these “natural” steroids and CSAC really should have called off the fight. It’s crazy CSAC let it go on when PEDs give one a competitive advantage that is dangerous to the opponent. I guess Chael rocking Silva in the first round is less shocking considering the power advantage PEDs would give him. This story gives me more respect for Anderson’s granite chin, which seems under-appreciated because he gets hit so little.

Was it in the UFC’s interest the fight went on? I know they didn’t know about it and would probably have cancelled it if they had, but imagine the fall out from losing the main event on what was a relatively stacked card with little name value. Likewise, Silva got his pay day and a career defining comeback victory in a dramatic fight that shocked the MMA world.

Well there you go. The war on drugs is retarded because it seems to ignore outright any benefits from any of these banned substances. Most of them are banned for political reasons in the first place when some truly are help people learn and grow healthily. Mushrooms don’t always lead to some guy jumping off a bridge, and in those cases there are a lot of other reasons it happened, the mushrooms may have just accentuated some serious underlying mental problems. Now it seems scientists have found that the active ingredient (what makes you trip) in magic mushrooms, psilocybin, can actually help with depression and anxiety. Of course, more studies should be done (and would have to) before this becomes a treatment but these are promising results.

The patients (all with life-ending cancer) found that using psilocybin helped their perspective on their situation and made them feel closer to their family and friends. This effect seems relatively universal for recreational users, who can find it accelerates their growth as a human being and strengthens bonds. The FDA has apparently only approved very few studies using hallucinogens since the 1990s, but this should help break down the ridiculous “fingers-in-the-ears”, “la la la la” approach politicians and the general public have towards certain drugs.

Here is a video from Polish MMA promotion KSW who promoted a freak show fight between former multiple time World’s Strongest Man winner, Mariusz Pudzianowski and the winner of the fattest ever man willing to fight in any damn thing that pays, Butterbean.

Don’t you love how the unknowing crowd just generally cheer when he stops to think of the words, somehow thinking they are dramatic pauses. Could be they just really hate the song though.

I have respect for people who believe in whatever they want to believe in as long as it doesn’t hurt others. I don’t have respect for the Nazis, not that many people do. It’s interesting that whenever someone brings up that religion is a useful way to mobilise people into doing horrific things, the religious counter argument is that the Nazis were atheists and justified their disgusting eugenics program using Darwinist arguments.

Well it appears that “The Origin of the Species” was on their banned book list, and they were apparently not fans. In addition, any book that criticised religion was also banned.